Gregory Ellis Mathis (born April 5, 1960), known professionally as Judge Mathis, is a former Michigan 36th District Court judge, television court show arbitrator, author, television producer, and Black interests motivational speaker/activist.
The Early Life[]
Mathis was born in Detroit, Michigan, the fourth of four boys born to Charles Mathis, a Detroit native, and his wife Alice Lee Mathis, a devoted Seventh-day Adventist, nurse's aide, and housekeeper. Alice (then divorced from Charles) raised Mathis alone in Detroit during the turbulent 1960s and 1970s. Mathis moved to Herman Gardens in 1964 and lived there with the family until roughly 1970. They moved away from the housing complex to avoid rising drug use and rates of violent crime.